LANCASTER — Niagara Falls had the opportunity for an upset win on a dramatic final play at their fingertips Thursday night – but it fell just out of reach.
A dramatic, late comeback from No. 5 Niagara Falls came up just short in a 20-14 loss on the road to No. 4 Lancaster in Section VI Class AA quarterfinal Thursday.
“There’s no quit in that team,” said Niagara Falls head coach Don Bass. “We couldn’t get what we wanted to do in the run game, but we knew they couldn’t cover us. We just tried to air them out, and with the wet ball sometimes things got away from us. But the kids kept fighting.”
Frustration was brewing on the Wolverine sideline as its season hung in the balance, trailing 20-6 late in the fourth quarter.
In need of a lifeline, it was their dynamic passing game duo that came to the rescue.
Quarterback Michael Taylor hit receiver Darryl Smith for a 24-yard touchdown with just under three minutes to play. A Taylor keeper added the 2-point conversion to make it 20-14.
After the Wolverine defense forced a Lancaster punt on the ensuing drive, Taylor completed four passes and tacked on a lengthy run to march the offense down the field with no timeouts, eventually having one final shot at the endzone with three seconds to play from the Legends 28-yard line.
Taylor collected the snap and rolled right, launching the ball to the endzone for Smith along the sideline. The ball hit the senior wide receiver in the hands, but he couldn’t make the difficult, toe-tap catch that would’ve tied the game. Shouts from the Niagara Falls sideline for a defensive pass interference penalty regarding a push on Smith before the ball arrived fell on deaf ears, as no flag was thrown.
“On that last play, you see a push that was clearly a pass interference,” Bass said of the final play. “(Smith) almost caught the ball as well. … Our kids struggle with so much, and getting an opportunity just snatched away from them, it’s kind of disappointing.”
It was an emotional loss for the Wolverines, who were so close to their first playoff win since 2017.
For Bass, the group was extra special. With so many key seniors like Taylor and Smith set to graduate, it makes the reality they’re now in even harder to come to terms with.
“That’s one of my all-time favorite teams, I’m really going to miss that group,” Bass said. “(The seniors) the last two years spent so much time in my office, I call them my sons. I love them for life, and it’s just unbelievable I don’t get to go to practice with them on Monday.”
Lancaster opened the scoring in the first quarter on a 12-yard rushing score from Dan Ahearn to make it 7-0, but Falls had an answer from an unsurprising source, as Taylor hit Smith on a deep ball for a 93-yard touchdown that made it 7-6 at halftime.
The 93-yard score was their longest connection of the season, and made up the bulk of Taylor’s 305 passing yards and Smith’s 155 yards on five catches. Their two touchdown connections gave them 10 total on the season.
“I can’t describe how important they’ve been,” Bass said of Taylor and Smith. “They’ve been essential from day one. … To know that they’re not there, that’s a tough thing to swallow.”
The defending Class AA sectional champions pulled away in the third quarter, as Ahearn tacked on his second touchdown of the night and quarterback Matt King scored on a 6-yard keeper that wound up being the game-winning score.
It was a bit closer than the Legends may have liked considering where they sat at the start of the fourth quarter, but for head coach Eric Rupp, it’s all about surviving and advancing.
“At the end of the day, you’ve got to find a way in the playoffs,” Rupp said. “Give a lot of credit to Niagara Falls, it’s a talented team and they’re really well coached with Coach Bass. … It wasn’t pretty, but in the end the kids kept on working and we were fortunate to come out with the win.”
Ahearn, who had just over 100 yards on 27 carries to go with his pair of touchdowns and 66 receiving yards, left the game late in the third quarter and did not return for the Legends. Rupp did not have an update on his bellcow running back after the game.
Defensively, Tim Kopacz had four sacks for the Legends, while Parker Waite had a key fourth quarter interception of Taylor in the red zone.
The Legends will face No. 1 Bennett in the Class AA semifinals, with a trip to Highmark Stadium for the championship game on the line.